"Let Little Dog come out to see us!"

"That's right, quickly call Little Dog out, let him come out and meet us brothers!"

Two men wearing purple-striped armor on their chests stood in the military camp, shouting loudly.

Around them was a group of barbarians.

At this time, in the barbarian military camp, the wails of men and the miserable cries of women were endless. This nation, which had been driven out of the Three Jins and had suffered for hundreds of years on the snowy plains, was venting all the accumulated brutality and oppression on the Jin people, who they had previously regarded as superior.

Delicious and abundant food,

Exquisite gold, silver, and jade,

Sturdy and durable armor,

Beautiful women who seemed to be able to be pinched to draw water,

Whoosh,

These,

Were all things that most barbarians couldn't even come into contact with in ten lifetimes, but now they were all displayed in front of them, for them to enjoy.

Stars,

It was like a dream!

"Are those two the two from the Situ family?"

Two people were sitting on a haystack in the distance, one was Sang Hu, who had a string of human skulls hanging around his neck, and the one who asked the question was a one-eyed man named Gelimu. Gelimu had delicate skin that was different from other barbarians, and if it weren't for his one eye, he would look more like a scholar from Jin.

In fact, he did have Jin blood. His grandfather had fled to the snowy plains because of a crime, and his family had been working for a barbarian tribe, managing their business.

Later, when the barbarian king raised an army, he was one of the first to respond. He had made great military achievements. The barbarian king was very generous in some ways and did not treat him differently because of his Jin blood, allowing him to hold the position of a Ten Thousand Household Commander.

Under his command, there was also a large group of defeated Jin soldiers who had been captured and became slaves, which was also suitable for him, a "Jin person," to command.

Sang Hu nodded and pointed to the two people who were still cursing there, saying:

"Exactly, one is called Situ Yi, and the other is called Situ Jiong. They are from the Situ family, oh no, they are the brothers of Situ Lei, the Emperor of Cheng."

Gelimu lowered his head, chewing on a grass stem, and whispered:

"I heard that the King used to be a servant in their family?"

"Yes, there's nothing to be embarrassed about saying that, Gelimu. The Jin scent on you is still too strong. This matter will not only not make us despise the King, but will instead make us feel the King's greatness and nobility even more."

"You know, I don't mean that."

"Hehe."

"What are those two doing here looking for the King now?"

"Because the King promised them before that as long as our Sacred Race could enter the pass, he would support them in ascending the throne and becoming the co-rulers of the snowy plains and Jin.

Without their help, we wouldn't have been able to win several battles in a row in the snowy plains at the beginning. If it weren't for their internal cooperation, Xuehai Pass wouldn't have been so easily broken by us.

They two put in a lot of effort in our Sacred Race entering the pass."

"These two people really have no brains," Gelimu said with emotion.

Times were different now. In the beginning, the barbarians were just wandering souls on the snowy plains, so naturally they had to be obsequious to you, and you could naturally give orders as you pleased. But now that the barbarians had entered the pass and half of Cheng's territory had been lost, they still dared to act so arrogantly, shouting the King's name in the military camp.

"Don't look at how happily they're shouting now, how arrogant they are. In fact, they are more afraid than anyone else. Their current arrogance is just to cover up the fear and timidity in their hearts.

Moreover, they are still somewhat useful now. Some of the Situ family's cities and generals need them to contact and move around. It would be best if they could be persuaded to surrender."

"So troublesome."

"Gelimu, how come you seem more like a Sacred Race member than our Sacred Race."

"I have long believed in the stars."

"Hehe, you know, I don't mean that;

Actually, if Situ Lei hadn't died at Xuehai Pass, the King really intended to help one of them ascend the throne.

Our foundation is still in the snowy plains."

Hearing this, Gelimu suddenly said dissatisfiedly:

"Why!"

"Which 'why' are you referring to?"

"I don't want to go back. My family used to live here. Now that I've returned, I haven't thought about going back to the snowy plains. It's much more comfortable here than in the snowy plains."

"Who says it isn't? But you have to understand that if you try to swallow a whole sheep in one gulp, your belly will be burst.

We have to take it one step at a time. Now, we must first migrate the Situ family's population, artisans, women, and children to the snowy plains.

Let their children, when they grow up, only speak the language of our Sacred Race and become warriors of our Sacred Race!

Let their women continue to reproduce and raise more people for our Sacred Race!

Let their artisans forge more tools and weapons for our Sacred Race!

Let their men herd for us and build cities for us!

It's not that we don't want to live here forever, Gelimu. You were once a Jin person, and this used to be your home. But you have to know that in the more distant past, this used to be the homeland of our Sacred Race.

Coming back is like a dream, so we want to firmly grasp something even more. We are afraid that this dream will suddenly wake up, and in the end, nothing will be left."

Gelimu took a breath and asked:

"Is it because... the Yan people?"

Cheng's most elite and most battle-hardened troops were buried north of Xuehai Pass. Now, Cheng only had the strength to barely resist. Their troop stationed in the south year-round guarding the border with Chu was cut off and unable to return for support.

Situ Lei was seriously injured and fled. If Situ Lei died, then the complete collapse of Cheng could be said to be only a matter of time. The only variable,

Was probably the country called "Yan" to the west of Cheng.

They had once sent an expeditionary force to cross the Tian Duan Mountains and enter the snowy plains. And now, once Cheng completely collapsed, then the barbarians would directly face the reaction from the Yan country.

There would be no Tian Duan Mountains to act as a barrier in between.

Sang Hu nodded heavily and said:

"Therefore, the King has slowed down the pace of the attack. It may seem to you that this is giving Cheng a chance to breathe, but isn't it also giving us a chance to breathe?"

"Are the Yan people really that scary?"

"Not easy to deal with."

A voice came from behind the two of them. Alai, holding a lamb leg, jumped onto the haystack, wearing the iron mask on his face.

Sang Hu turned his head, glanced at Alai, and smiled:

"You kid, you almost didn't come back."

"It's because I ran fast. I was almost caught by the Yan people. There was a little dwarf in the Yan army. It was just a little bit, really just a little bit. That little dwarf almost caught me. I was lucky enough to encounter a mountain demon beast, and that's how I managed to escape."

Gelimu turned his head to look at Alai and said, "Are the Yan people really that scary?"

"If we can avoid provoking them now, we should try to avoid provoking them. When our warriors have more armor, when our army becomes larger, when more and more tribes on the snowy plains submit, then we will have the confidence to truly fight a battle with the Yan people."

"Alai, you've been frightened by the Yan people," Gelimu teased.

"No, these are the King's original words. You don't think the King is a timid coward, do you? No one in this world hopes to defeat Yan more than the King does;

That way, we can force the Yan people to submit and send that princess over for a marriage alliance. This is the dream in the King's heart."

At this moment,

Accompanied by the cursing of the two princes of the Situ family,

A man wearing wolf skin walked out from the depths of the camp.

When the man passed by, all the barbarians around him knelt down,

And this man,

Ran directly to the two princes of the Situ family,

With a "thump,"

He knelt down,

And shouted:

"Grandpa, Second Grandpa, Little Dog has come to pay his respects."

………

Ying City was originally the place where the Situ family rose to prominence. After the establishment of the Great Cheng, it was renamed Ying Du.

Outside the city, armies loyal to the emperor were arriving one after another from various places. Some still had clear banners, but most of them already presented a chaotic appearance.

Originally, the Situ family had established the country in a hurry, and there was still a cloud of suspicion hanging in the air that Situ Lei had murdered his father. In fact, some forces within the Situ family had not had time to be integrated.

And originally, all of this could be cleared through the war against the barbarians. A new country had just been established, and the most effective way to stabilize the people's hearts and maintain the new emperor's authority was always to use a great victory in a foreign war.

However, all of these plans had been played out of control.

The Situ family's elite was buried at Xuehai Pass, and the barbarians entered the pass. This Great Cheng, which had been established for less than a year, was suddenly in a precarious situation.

And now, many eyes were staring at the imperial palace.

Situ Lei did not die at Xuehai Pass. He had returned alive, but everyone knew, and even the people of Ying Du knew, that Situ Lei had returned with serious injuries.

If this new country, which was already on the verge of collapse, had its founding emperor die at this time, then what could this country use to maintain itself?

Inside the palace,

Situ Lei was covered with a quilt, and two charcoal basins were burning in the room. The weather had already turned hot, but Situ Lei's body was still feeling cold.

His lips were pale, and his eye sockets were sunken. He was not too old, but he now presented a feeling of being at the end of his rope.

In front of his bed, Sun Youdao, the Prime Minister of Great Cheng, was drafting a national letter.

After writing the last stroke, Sun Youdao raised the national letter, blew on it, and then looked at the emperor on the bed, saying:

"Your Majesty, it's finished."

Situ Lei's gaze turned to the eunuch who was standing by the sickbed, always attending to him. The eunuch understood and took out the seal.

Just as he was about to stamp it,

Sun Youdao suddenly took a step back, knelt down,

And cried out:

"Your Majesty, if Your Majesty nurses his body back to health and reorganizes the army, there is still hope of defeating the barbarians and recovering the lost territory!"

Situ Lei looked at his prime minister,

His lips parted,

And said in an extremely hoarse voice:

"No one looks up to you if you admit defeat after losing everything."

"Your Majesty!"

"Admitting defeat while you still have a little family fortune, when you still have some capital left, is considered to have some backbone."

"I beg Your Majesty to think again!"

"Youdao."

"Your subject is here, Your Majesty."

"Add another sentence, add another sentence."

Sun Youdao immediately wiped away his tears, re-rolled out the scroll, and picked up the writing brush;

"I... no, I, Situ Lei, do not seek the position of national ruler, do not seek a fief, do not seek protection for my descendants, do not seek a future for the Situ family. Today, I offer up this shattered land, seeking only one thing;

I beg the Yan... I beg His Great Majesty the Emperor to send a large army as soon as possible to drive out the barbarians and return peace to the people of the Three Jins."